Marquette freshmen Jamal Cain and Greg Elliott have seen their on-court learning get accelerated in the Golden Eagles' last four games.

Since junior Haanif Cheatham left the program, the two wing players from the Detroit area — and longtime friends — have been thrust into larger roles.

That education gets another chapter Saturday when the Golden Eagles (6-3) travel to Madison to face Wisconsin (4-6) at 11 a.m. at the Kohl Center.

It is the first true road game for the freshmen and their indoctrination into the intrastate rivalry.

"Just knowing how big of a game it is for Marquette and some of the players like Matt Heldt, Cam (Marotta) and Sam (Hauser), knowing they're from Wisconsin, we're just going to try to play our heart out and get the win," Cain said Friday.

Elliott said they got a crash course in the rivalry from students on campus.

"People were telling us it's 'Badger Week.' We were so confused. We were like, 'What's Badger Week?' " Elliott said. "We didn't understand, but somebody finally broke it down for us and said, 'You're getting ready to play Wisconsin.' "

Elliott stated that he isn't going to be distracted by any hype.

"I'm treating it like any other game. You're going to have pregame jitters and stuff like that," he said. "But once the ball goes in the air, it's just another basketball game."

That view undoubtedly pleases MU coach Steve Wojciechowski.

"We don't talk about 'rivalry' or 'road game.' Ball goes up and let's try to have a good game plan and execute it," Wojciechowski said.

Cain and Elliott are now a big part of Wojciechowski's game plans.

Elliott has made two starts and played 95 minutes in the last four games after logging 67 in the five games with Cheatham on the team. Cain is at 87 minutes in the last four games. He played 35 with Cheatham around.

They have gained the trust of MU's key players. Sophomore guard Markus Howard was effusive in his praise of Cain and Elliott.

"In my opinion, Greg is playing as good as any freshman in the country," Howard said after Elliott's first start. "A lot of people counted him out because of his size; he's not the biggest guy (170 pounds). But what he lacks in physical size, he makes up in heart.

"I haven't been around a kid like Greg or anyone else who has a heart as big as Greg's. He just has that will to do anything he can to help us win. The way he has been playing is a testament to the type of person Greg is.

"Same thing with Jamal. I think Jamal has really been helping us a lot, too. Those two have really been stepping up big for us when we need it."

Cain and Elliott said their confidence has grown with every game and both simultaneously answered "defense" when asked about what they brought to the team in their extended minutes.

"We talk about that after every game and before every game. We watch film together and talk about what we can do better on offense and defense. But mainly defense," Elliott said. "We can impact the game because we both got good length for wings. We come in the game and turn up the defensive intensity and help the games go a little faster."

The 6-foot-3 Elliott has used his long arms to make 12 blocks and force 11 steals.

The 6-7 Cain also has been disruptive with five steals. He also had an emphatic block before halftime against Vermont, one of the team's top defensive highlights this season.

Cain also feels that he has grown tremendously as a player since the season opener against Mount St. Mary's when he played 12 minutes.

He's ready to take that confidence on the road in Madison.

"Honestly, games like this, I think, are the best ones," Cain said. "When everybody in the building wants you to lose. Those are the best games to win.".